In a victory for the National Automatic Merchandising Association (NAMA) and other small businesses, the U.S. House of Representatives voted recently to repeal new IRS 1099 reporting burdens. The repeal legislation drew bipartisan support. Rep. Dan Lungren's HR 4, the Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act of 2011, repeals the requirement that businesses file a 1099 form for any cumulative transactions over $600 a year.

The legislation would pay for the $17 billion cost by requiring people making 400 percent of the federal poverty limit to repay health insurance exchange subsidies if their income increases over the course of a year, according to NAMA.

The U.S. Senate has already passed an amendment repealing the 1099 as part of the FAA Reauthorization bill, so the next step in the legislative process should be a conference committee. The conference committee will work to negotiate the differences in the House and Senate legislation. The House version is controversial and opposed by the Obama administration, so the path to final implementation remains somewhat uncertain.

NAMA will continue to push for repeal of this costly new small business burden prior to the burden starting on Jan. 1, 2012, according to Ned Monroe, NAMA vice president of government affairs. For additional information contact Monroe at nmonroe@vending.org.